Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum

Main => Monitor/Video Forum => Topic started by: raventy on August 08, 2004, 02:25:08 pm

Title: Possible to replace Arcade Monitor with TV or CRT?
Post by: raventy on August 08, 2004, 02:25:08 pm
Hey guys, I was wondering if anoyone knew of a way to hook a JAMMA arcade board up to a regular tv(prefered) or a CRT monitor? Because arcade monitors are so much money and it'd be alot cheaper to stick a tv or crt monitor in instead of an arcade one. Thanks!
Title: Re:Possible to replace Arcade Monitor with TV or CRT?
Post by: MonitorGuru on August 08, 2004, 10:37:55 pm
Arcade monitors are cheaper than computer monitors or TV's in actuality.

You can fix up an existing arcade monitor for $10 to $70 for 19" or $10 to $100 for 25-27" if it's dead.

If you don't have one, for those same prices, plus a free donor tube you can MAKE an arcade monitor ($70 for 19" or $100 for 25-27" + cost of donor tube--e.g. near free if you look for dead tv's at rummage sales or thrift stores or in the back of TV shops)

But to directly answer your question: No, you cannot (easily) connect a Jamma board to a TV or computer monitor.  The costs to convert it would be more expensive than building an arcade monitor and you also would not be happy with the quality.
Title: Re:Possible to replace Arcade Monitor with TV or CRT?
Post by: StephenH on August 08, 2004, 11:35:00 pm
Actually, some boards (such as the Capcom CPS-3) can output S-Video or Composite video.  If this is the case, a TV can be used.

If you are in europe, you can connect the RGB out from a JAMMA connector to a TV with SCART in.   SCART TVs are not easy to get in the USA or other parts of the world.

If your board only has RGB out, and you cannot get a SCART TV, you would need a converter than can convert the RGB to an input your TV has, such as Component, S-Video, Composite, or RF.    Note that a TV will display lower video quality than the original arcade monitor when this method is used.
Title: Re:Possible to replace Arcade Monitor with TV or CRT?
Post by: raventy on August 10, 2004, 04:19:42 pm
wow build one eh? heh never thought of that. The reason I ask is because I have a soul calibur arcade machine which I got from someone which "works" like as in sound plays and you can "play" the game.. but no picture appears on the screen. When opening the machine up I found a note inside saying "Int. Loss of Pic. Tap on board, pic come back. goes out after about 10 min. Tap on board again, pic come back for about 10 min then goes out." which is dated 5-19-99 so it seems like this machine had the problem once before. The machine worked fine up until it was moved recently when this problem seemed to have come back. got any ideas?
Title: Re:Possible to replace Arcade Monitor with TV or CRT?
Post by: JoeB on August 10, 2004, 04:25:38 pm
search the internet for information about "supergun".

Supergun builders buy a special board that converts RGB video to RCA/Svideo that allow them to play any JAMMA board on a regular TV.

Mind you NTSC/PAL Svideo quality is not as clean/nice as pure RGB..  but it's the easiest thing to do if you're not too electronically savy (and you can always hookup cable/DVD to the TV in the arcade machine).

There are RGB accepting TV's.. but they are studio editing grade and hence very expensive.